County Hopes Road Improvements Pave Way To Economic Health

Osceola Forecast '92

The Proposed Dart Boulevard Extension Already Is Drawing A Cavalcade Of Developers, Clamoring To Get Take Advantage Of The Tourist Dollars It Is Sure To Offer.

January 26, 1992|By Cheri Henderson Special To The Sentinel

KISSIMMEE — In the next few years, Osceola is likely to be leaping, rather than limping, ahead.

With transportation improvements that include the planned Dart Boulevard extension and the almost complete extension of Bermuda Avenue, Osceola County's economy will hit a bull's-eye, according to most business experts.

The 12.2 mile road will be noteworthy for more than just the stoplights and toll booths that will dot it. It will be Osceola's latest resort corridor and a potential mecca for industrial development.

Already the county is counting its money: an estimated $5 million in toll revenue its first year and up to five times that by 2020. According to current development plans, the entire stretch will open in March 1995.

According to county Public Works Director Larry K. O'Dell, developers by the plenty are asking where to sign up. Tupperware will expand its headquarters there, setting the stage for further industrial development. Also, four major resort complexes are on the drawing board.

''It's without question the largest public works project ever attempted by Osceola County,'' O'Dell said.

Plans call for Dart to hook up with the Southern Connector, which will provide a more efficient route to Orlando and to Orlando International Airport.

Rick Tesch, president of the Economic Development Commission of Central Florida Inc., said the new access to the airport will provide an additional incentive to new industries. That link may finally help Osceola realize its longtime dream of economic diversification.

Some small businessmen in Osceola County aren't necessarily thrilled with the changes that Disney is bringing to the county's economy, specifically the Dart Boulevard extension, which some tourists will use as a route straight into Disney turf in Orange County.

Randy Larson, part-owner of Larson's Lodge Main Gate on U.S. Highway 192 in Kissimmee, said he would prefer the extension stop at its intersection with State Road 535 rather than continuing into Orange.

''I obviously feel it's going to hurt 192,'' Larson said. ''What I'm really opposed to is it going directly into World Drive (on Disney property). It will take people from Osceola County and will put them into Orange County. Osceola won't get the tourist tax dollars.''

However, he conceded that until the recession, Osceola hotel rooms were always in short supply, and that perhaps the construction of new Disney parks could ensure enough business for everyone - even businesses along 192.

Alan Starling, owner of Starling Chevrolet in Kissimmee and a member of the local chamber's Jobs 2000 task force, said he welcomes the economic diversification road improvements may bring.

However, he also owns property on U.S. 192 where his dealership used to be and said he can identify with concerns that Dart could do a one-two punch on business elsewhere in Osceola.

''The Dart Extension certainly has that potential. However, having said that, I think that we, anywhere in Central Florida, can use additional roadways. I wouldn't oppose Dart Boulevard,'' he said.

The county may be blind to the importance of businesses along U.S. 192 to its tax base, he said.

''Let's just say for example . . . if 10 percent of business on that road is negatively impacted, what does that do to tax collections for the county?'' Starling said.

''I have heard (Central Florida economist) Hank Fishkind saying that when that grid gets in place -John Young Parkway (Bermuda), Dart and the Southern Connector - that will be great for Osceola. When you own business on 192, it's the highest-taxed place in the county. That land is so valuable out there that you need to pay the county more for the privilege of being there,'' he added.

He said that since much of the county's tax collection goes to the school system, ''(If) all of the sudden 192 businesses go under, schools have more trouble,'' he said.

Les Haskew, executive director of the Kissimmee/Osceola County Chamber of Commerce, disagreed that small businesses will suffer from the development of new roads.

''When big development occurs, most people believe that it will hurt smaller businesses. All it's going to do is lure more people here,'' Haskew said. ''Disney's plan is estimated to draw 10 million visitors a year. It will force businesses to get better at what they do.''